A buckle is commonly used in a bag for releasably connecting straps to the bag. The buckle generally includes male and female couplers each arranged to connect with a strap piece, such that when coupled they form a handle or shoulder strap assembly.
To provide some degree of security when leaving a bag briefly unattended the user may loop a releasably fastened shoulder strap about a piece of furniture, or the like. This simple technique can be performed quickly and without drawing attention and this has been found sufficient to defeat casual theft.
Some prior art solutions, such as U.S. Pat. No. 2,956,324 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,671,516, have provided buckles with a coupling axis oblique to a lengthwise direction of the strap. These buckles rely on the tension of the belt to urge the male and female couplers together to maintain a closed position. These old buckles are vulnerable to accidental release if the tension in the belt is released or if the belt is twisted, making them unsuitable to prevent casual theft, as the release of tension on the belt or twisting of the belt cannot be avoided. It will be understood, therefore, that there is a need for a buckle for such an application that is able to provide improved deterrence of casual theft, without substantially increasing the cost of the buckle. It is an object of the present invention to overcome to address this need or, more generally, to provide an improved buckle.